Adrian Segecic’s next step is turning Portsmouth’s attacking control into real danger

Portsmouth had the ball and the territory against Derby County, but their second straight home defeat exposed the gap between attacking volume and attacking threat. Adrian Segecic remains one of the few players capable of narrowing it.

Possession has not solved Portsmouth’s problem Adrian Segecic started as Portsmouth’s central attacking midfielder in Tuesday’s 2-0 home defeat to Derby County, a role that placed him between Derby’s midfield and defensive lines rather than isolating him on the flank. Portsmouth controlled 65 per cent of possession and produced 21 shots, yet only three were on target. The numbers describe a team able to circulate the ball without consistently disorganising the opponent. (playmakerstats.com)

That distinction matters for Segecic. Portsmouth do not necessarily need more possession from the Australian; they need him to make their possession more invasive. His value is in receiving on the half-turn, carrying the ball towards a retreating back line and accelerating attacks before Derby could reset. Against a side defending a lead, those moments were more important than another safe pass around the edge of the block.

The late combination showed the route forward Segecic’s clearest attacking involvement came shortly after Derby doubled its advantage in the 62nd minute. Abu Kamara combined with him as Portsmouth tried to respond, with Segecic’s effort deflected behind. Derby’s official report also recorded a further low save from the Australian’s shot from distance, while match coverage confirmed a late blocked effort. (dcfc.co.uk)

Neither action changed the result, but both pointed towards the type of intervention Portsmouth lacked elsewhere: a decision made quickly enough to turn circulation into a shot. The Kamara-Segecic relationship is particularly relevant because it gives Portsmouth two players who can attack the next line rather than simply hold width. Kamara can drive inside or combine around the corner; Segecic can arrive behind that movement and attack the second action.

The issue is that these connections appeared too intermittently. Portsmouth’s attacking structure often became a sequence of deliveries, blocked shots and possession regained in non-threatening areas. Segecic was involved, but not yet consistently at the point where the move became decisive. That is the gap between being a promising attacking outlet and becoming the player through whom the team’s final-third plan is organised.

A larger role should mean more responsibility, not just more touches John Mousinho has already trusted Segecic from the start, and Tuesday’s selection kept him in the No.10 position behind Marko Milovanović, with Kamara to his right and Ryan Kavuma-McQueen on the opposite side. (dcfc.co.uk) The next adjustment should not simply be to give Segecic more of the ball in the same zones. It should be to give him clearer permission to leave the initial structure and find the spaces Portsmouth’s possession is creating.

When Derby dropped deep, Segecic needed to alternate between occupying the pocket in front of the centre-backs and moving towards the left half-space to create a third-player combination with Kamara or Zak Swanson. If he remains fixed centrally, Portsmouth can become predictable: the centre is crowded, the wide players receive too far from goal and the striker is asked to win difficult service. If Segecic drifts without a coordinated run beyond him, the movement simply relocates the problem.

The more useful version of his role would therefore pair freedom with a clear reference point. Milovanović’s movement can pin the centre-backs, while Segecic attacks the space either side of them. That would also create better conditions for his left-footed shooting, which was one of the few ways Portsmouth threatened Zetterström after Derby went 2-0 ahead.

The question is conversion, not potential Portsmouth have now lost consecutive home matches, and Tuesday was their third defeat of the early Championship campaign according to local reporting. (expressfm.com) That raises the pressure on Mousinho to find a more productive attacking hierarchy, but it does not automatically make Segecic the answer to every problem. His next test is repeatability.

The flashes are already visible: he starts in a central role, combines with dangerous runners and is willing to shoot when the defence refuses to open. The requirement now is to produce those actions earlier and more often, particularly before Portsmouth fall behind and the opponent can defend with the entire game state in its favour.

For Segecic, the Derby defeat was not evidence that Portsmouth should abandon control. It was evidence that control needs a sharper focal point. If he can turn the next-pass connection with Kamara into a regular mechanism rather than a late attacking glimpse, his role can grow because the team needs a player who changes the tempo of its possession.

Sources Statistics and Lineups Portsmouth 0-2 Derby County :: Championship 2026/27 REPORT: Portsmouth 0-2 Derby County - Blog - Derby County REPORT: Pompey 0, Derby 2 - Portsmouth's Express FM Portsmouth 0-2 Derby County: Official Match Report Portsmouth 0-2 Derby: Match Report & Highlights Pompey 0, Derby 2 — Express FM Match Report